Still downloading vCenter iso (only been going an hour, and still 4 - 5 hours to go. - And our Government says 25Mbs will be more than enough for the next 10 years!)

However, I've got the Hypervisor and blew away my old labs. Started installing and was hit with "Unable to install, 3.92Gb of memory is required." Wasn't expecting that. However, some adjustments and away we go.

Given VMWare's track record I'll wait for 5.5.1 but you can download the GA release now on vmware.com.

Ummm...crap

Just what I need in the middle of a migration....engineers coming up and asking me if we should go to 5.5 since it is new and shiny. These are the same fanboys who upgraded to iOS 7 over the weekend and can't figure out why half their apps don't work anymore.

We don't have the problem here as a lot of engineers here pulled all-nighter because of some dodgy bugs .. no one wants to go anywhere near 5.1 even ... Now customers however, they need 5.1 for 2012 VMs .. we will have to go down that route eventually

Hmm, I wonder if I'll be allowed to take the 5.5 exam after finishing up my current 5.1 class, or if I have to take one of those "What's New" classes after passing the 5.1 exam. . . (if there is even a difference, they might just update the existing exam and be done with it.)

Hmm, I wonder if I'll be allowed to take the 5.5 exam after finishing up my current 5.1 class, or if I have to take one of those "What's New" classes after passing the 5.1 exam. . . (if there is even a difference, they might just update the existing exam and be done with it.)

Currently finishing up the class requirement through Stanly on version 5.0, hopefully wont see a big change in the test before sitting the exam.

Until VMware come out and say that the VCP-DCV 5.5 is a new exam I am not expecting anything to cover 5.5 specifically, remember that this is a point release rather than a major upgrade (5.x rather than 6.x).

The exam itself still pertains to common 5.x content and doesn't contain anything 5.1 specific.

Fortunately I haven't encountered this, but there are active threads about this on VMTN.

So apparently, using Free ESXi, you can update your VMs to version 10. But you can't manage/edit version 10 VMs without vCenter Web Client, which you can't get without buying vSphere...? WTF, VMware...

Haven't got around to installing it yet, but for those that have, a question. I see ESXi 5.5 now requires 4GB of RAM as opposed to the usual 2GB that 4.x and 5.0/5.1 had. How much has the actual memory footprint increased, however? The reason I ask is because my current "lab" is nested in my laptop, and I've got only got 8GB of RAM to work with. But at least I can run 3 ESXi 5.1 nodes, a Windows VM running vCenter, and open filer for NAS/iSCSI. It's not great, but it's enough for labbing HA/DRS & testing PowerCLI scripts. If 5.5 uses significantly more memory, then that's really going to limit my options, and will make building a dedicated lab a higher priority than it was. In which case, does anyone have any tips for how I can convince my wife that this is money well spent? Just kidding... maybe...

"Start by doing what is necessary, then do what is possible; suddenly, you are doing the impossible." - St. Francis of Assisi

I've currently have my 3 hypervisors + a "Physical" vCenter (nested in Workstation, but not running as a VM in ESXi) = "Physical" DC 9only 2Gb for that one) + Openfiler. I have 16Gb and it's only hit just under 15gb at it's highest point so far. The ESXi VMs don't seem to be doing too much, but Load it up and see how much you can push it by.

I've currently have my 3 hypervisors + a "Physical" vCenter (nested in Workstation, but not running as a VM in ESXi) = "Physical" DC 9only 2Gb for that one) + Openfiler. I have 16Gb and it's only hit just under 15gb at it's highest point so far. The ESXi VMs don't seem to be doing too much, but Load it up and see how much you can push it by.

Already trying to shop for a cheap 32GB server ... 16GB is really at the edge ... You can save a bit by simply installing the iSCSI target on a windows box - DC or vCenter for example - so no need for openfiler - if a lab is all you need.

At least you can use a small 128MB RAM VM running Linux if you need vmotion testing etc.

Fortunately I haven't encountered this, but there are active threads about this on VMTN.

So apparently, using Free ESXi, you can update your VMs to version 10. But you can't manage/edit version 10 VMs without vCenter Web Client, which you can't get without buying vSphere...? WTF, VMware...

Errr ... ouch ? You cannot create a VM with more than 2TB either and manager it then via the c# client.

Seeing as something will always break with every release, at what point do you decide to migrate over?

Well when the new update is first released, it's advisable to wait a little while before upgrading your prod environment. During the waiting period if there are issues, they normally get fixed quickly and once U1 comes out, the release is pretty stable.

We're still on 4.0 Only because our SANs aren't on the HCL for 5.x But everything is working and stable. However, We do require to upgrade all our Hosts and SANs at the start of next year due to our replacement schedule, so we will be looking at 5.1 minimum.